Desperate Scratchings to Professionalism

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How Am I Funding This?

While I still haven’t heard from my fifth university, all the rest that I’ve applied to in the UK have responded. However, all of them are treating me as an overseas student.

A possible technicality has come into play: From my understanding of my research, if I’m treated as an international student, I’m ineligible for any student loans or scholarships over there. However, all but one of the schools who have accepted me are treating me as an overseas student. Does this meant that I’m eligible for the financial aid and scholarships, but still locked into non-residential tuition costs?

That’s what I’m trying to find out.

I emailed Durham University about the matter on Friday, and only this morning got a response (the weekend and time differences and all that). The lady in the financial department there sent me to two websites:

Unfortunately, the first link only allows me to call them, so I need to find a way to do that. The next unfortunate bit is that it would appear that I don’t qualify for Student Finance.

This leaves me with two options to put into play (if I do manage to contact someone and they tell me I truly don’t qualify)–well, four I suppose (though the fourth is an absolute last resort).

Scour every scholarship I can find both here in the States as well as in the UK and apply to them all.

Put off school for a year and work to save up the first year’s tuition, and continue doing that until I gain residency (which could be three years).

See if I’m able to get any bank loans through my NatWest account (in England)

See if I can get a student loan from my credit union in the US.

I am still optimistic that I can make this happen, and am prepared to take a year off to work and get some money saved up. I’m not above hard work, especially if I have a goal in mind. I think I’ll be able to save my funds better as well if I’m in a place where I’m not as tempted to go out and do fun things, a place where I don’t know what there is to do for fun (you know, like Durham).

We’ll see how it goes, but as it stands, this is where my future as a student resides.